Listen
by lili-dono
Summary: Ed, Roy, Al, and Armstrong are all out to capture the new alchemist serial killer Sorrow. Will they find him or will they get sidetracked with troubles and exhuastion from Ed? [yaoi] innocent!EdRoyArmstrongAlOC (wow, how did I do that)
1. Chapter I

Roy glanced around, slightly nervous of this intrusion. He was walking up the path to the Rockbell's home, a place that he frequently visited now but yet it still felt so _odd _to be in the Elric brother's presence. Not Edward's, he had grown quite used to him, it was Alphonse.

He knocked absently on the door, still amidst his own thoughts when the door quickly opened and there stood a rather ecstatic yet flustered blond with grey eyes. "Oh, hello, colonel!" Al greeted, opening the door wider for Roy to enter. He was covered with flour from helping Pinako and Winry make some bread in the kitchen. "Brother's not here right now, he's probably still on the train coming back from Central. Ever since he's become Lieutenant Colonel he hasn't been here very often, but that's okay, because he makes just as many visits as you do."

"I see," Roy said, grinning at the thought of Ed in his uniform. It was now required for him, since the black leather and red coat would not suit a Lieutenant Colonel. He entered the house, comfortably making his way to the library that Ed had constructed, including all of the books from his father's old Alchemy collection along with new books he had collected along his journeys. Al knew he could allow Roy wander by himself, so he turned to head back to the kitchen. The Rockbell house was like a home for Roy as well, so he was trusted to be alone for as long as he needed.

"Wait!" Roy said suddenly, turning around and seeing as Al stopped abruptly in the doorway. "Did Edward bring any new books home recently?"

Al put a finger to his chin in thought then nodded, pointing to the table next to the rocking chair and lamp. "Yeah, he brought that one home. The last time Ed was here he stayed up late into the night reading and making notes in it."

"Thank you." Roy made his way towards the library and indeed saw the book sitting on the mahogany table. "Hm…" he observed right away that Ed had indeed read the book pretty thoroughly just by looking at it. Pieces of torn and faded paper were sticking out of the pages, acting as bookmarks. Also, bigger pages stuck out among the bookmarks, covered with scribbles that Ed called notes.

Roy took a seat in the rocking chair, and with a snap of his fingers he lit the fireplace. He pulled off his gloves, placed them next to the lamp, and picked up the book. "Alchemy and Equivalent Exchange. Book 245?" His eyes widened. There were 244 I _known /I _ books in the Alchemy and Equivalent Exchange 'series', each with more and more information. Roy had read all of the books, the last one so confusing to understand and comprehend because of just how much you had to study and know about alchemy.

He quickly opened the book onto a random page, his eyes widening even more. Edward's unique handwriting had sketched notes up and down the page, and there were several underlined sentences within circled paragraphs. This was crazy. He read over the page, just for kicks, and his mind came up to a blank. For the first time ever he didn't know what any of these alchemy sentences meant. He flipped through a few more pages and was about to start studying the transmutation sketches that Edward had drawn on one of the added in papers when the front door open and closed.

And there stood Edward. Roy blushed as he looked over the now 17 year old. His blond hair was longer and pulled back into a loose and lazy ponytail. He was taller now, since he no longer had automail limbs and just about Roy's height, and very attractive in his blue military uniform. However, he didn't have his coat on, it was just his white button up shirt underneath, his coat folded in his arms along with a few more books.

"Hello, Lieutenant Colonel," Roy called from the chair, setting the book down quickly and standing up. "How was the train ride from Central?" He asked as he approached Edward and greeted him by taking the coat and books off his hands.

"Not that bad," Ed yawned, sniffing the bread-scented air. "I could use something to eat though. I didn't have any lunch before I left Central."

Roy smiled and set the coat and books down on the sofa. "You don't say? Well, Alphonse, Winry, and Pinako are making some bread, I bet you want some."

"That's the idea, Colonel." Edward said in a very strict sounding way. Roy was impressed. The boy really had learned some things after being a State Alchemist for 6 years. Especially after hanging around Roy for most of those 6 years. Even now, though, as he looked into Ed's golden eyes, he could see strong determination. "Eh, sorry, Roy," Ed said, relaxing his tense composure. "It's hard working in Central with all those soldiers thinking they know what to do and really don't. However, the Fuhrer says that they may transfer me to East City Headquarters to help out with you. How unfortunate, eh? I'll have to listen to orders from you again."

Roy just laughed at the idea and shook his head. "You really have become more mature, haven't you, Ed?"

Ed made a face and started to walk for the kitchen. "I suppose. I'm trying to take on the role of a 'father' per say for my family. Since I no longer have automail for Auntie Pinako and Winry to fix, they can no longer get money off of me. Thus, whatever I get paid in the military or what I already have is mainly for them. And since Al isn't military he's not getting any money either so…"

Winry looked up from what she was doing as the two entered the kitchen. She wiped some flour from her flushed face and giggled. "Worrying about our family again, Ed? Let me remind you I'm just on vacation. Working in Rush Valley has done very good for me and I give most of my earnings to Granny Pinako!"

"Eh, how could I forget?" Ed said, rubbing the back of his neck. "Well, Winry, do you have some food for this military dog or don't you?"

Pinako tapped the table with her pipe and laughed, "What are you saying? Eating some bread before supper? I'm sorry Ed but you'll just have to wait. Next we'll be making some spaghetti to eat with this bread, be patient!"

Ed groaned loudly and threw his arms up into the air dramatically. "My stomach is so empty it can't even growl from hunger anymore!" However, since he knew it was a losing battle to argue with Pinako before supper, he snatched an apple out of the wooden bowl on the counter and stalked out of the kitchen, Roy following after him.

"What are you going to do while you wait for supper?" Roy questioned, folding his arms. "This is practically a military house, Ed. You never know when Armstrong or Hawkeye might show up for some peace and quiet."

"Well then," Ed supplied, putting his hands in his pockets and walking upstairs, "Let's just pray that they don't show up, eh?" He stopped in the middle of the steps and glanced back at Roy. "And please stop reading my alchemy books. It's really nerve racking thinking of you accidentally moving around my notes without you even noticing."

Roy suppressed his surprised look very nicely as he looked at the Full Metal Alchemist. "What gives you the idea that I've been reading your books?"

Ed pointed to Roy's gloves sitting next to the lamp and now also the book. Roy flushed with embarrassment. Ed really was observant. Was Roy becoming flakey, leaving such clues behind? No, Ed was just getting better.

"Hey, Pinako?" Roy asked, returning back into the kitchen since he didn't want to seem like he was crowding Ed too much upon his return from Central. "Do you want some help with supper?"

Pinako's wrinkles turned up into a smile and she replied happily, "Why yes, I would!"

It wasn't until about an hour later that they had finished making dinner. Winry and Al were setting the table, laughing at each other's jokes, Pinako was getting plates ready and keeping the spaghetti warm, so Roy decided that it was best to go get Ed.

While walking up the steps he started to wonder what Ed had done that whole hour while they were making the nice warm meal. Was he reading? Marking down those genius notes? Was he looking outside at the stars? Or maybe he was talking on the phone in the guest bedroom to Riza or Havoc? The possibilities were endless.

He passed up Winry's room, filled with all of her wrenches and supplies stocked on metal shelves. The whole room was more of a work area, the only thing giving it an idea that it was a bedroom was the bed underneath the windows facing out into the yard.

Then he passed Al's new room, pretty plain yet pleasant with a few alchemy books here and there. It was a shock that Al hadn't considered joining the military. Then again, it was also a shock that Ed agreed to continue to _stay_ in the military.

And finally came the guest room, the room that both Roy and Ed shared. It was the biggest bedroom in the house, containing 4 beds and a wall filled with shelves of books and with desks lined up for any military type person to stay and study or do work.

The door to the guest bedroom was closed however as Roy approached it. On the outside hung a metal sign reading: b **Military Personnel /b **. Winry had created it with the extra scraps of metal that she had. Roy thought it was cute, Ed didn't really say what he thought, but Roy knew that the Lt. Colonel appreciated it.

"Edward, supper is finally ready!" Roy called into the bedroom, knocking a few times on the door. No answer. "Ed?" Again no answer. He looked at the handle of the door, contemplating if he should go in or not. Finally, he grabbed it, turned it, and let himself in, seeing the semi-dark room. The only light was coming from a candle that was blazing away on Edward's preoccupied desk filled with more notes and open books compared to the other nice and clean desks.

Roy paused as his eyes adjusted to the dim lighting of the room, and when they finally did he spotted one of the beds disheveled. Edward lay on top of pushed back sheets, facing the Colonel with shut eyes, sleeping. His arm was sprawled out, loosely holding onto a book, a pencil sitting next to it.

"This guy can never stop and relax, can he? He works more than I do…" Roy sighed and took the book out of his hand, taking a glance at what he was reading. The book didn't have a title but it was clearly old. The cover was leather and wearing down, and some of the pages looked burnt, faded, and some even had water damage. He put the pencil between the pages that Ed had been holding the book open to, and flipped back a few pages, seeing if he could find out anything about what he had been reading. " I _November 13th. I skipped work today, making a few people curious, but that's not my problem. Today was Nina's birthday. She would've been 10, so it's the least I can do to visit her grave over in the Central cemetery where Hughes was buried as well. /I _" He stopped reading aloud and frowned. "A journal?" He flipped back a few more pages where his eyes landed on the heading of one of the entries.

" I _October 12th. Roy. I really appreciate what Roy has been doing, coming to visit Pinako, Al, and Winry whenever he can. It really is very kind of him. Surprisingly, being a Colonel isn't as busy as being a Lt. Colonel, since we seem to be doing everything so that the Colonel doesn't have to. I'm fine with that though, because I like being around alchemy. So, whenever I'm able I make as frequent visits as Roy does, and that's saying a lot. We even come on the same day, as if Roy knows when I'm going to be here or not. It's nice…sharing a room with_ _someone. Al has his own room, and since he's going out with Winry now those two are usually together. And I'm usually doing work anyway so that's fine. However, it's very nice having someone who understands what I'm doing in the house with me. I'll have to thank Roy sometime for that. /I _"

Roy looked down at Edward's sleeping form, watching as the blonde groaned and started to open his golden eyes. The Colonel set the journal on the bedside table and sat down next to Ed, running a hand down his warm arm. "Wake up, Lt. Colonel. Supper." He said in a stern, mocking tone.

Ed just groaned and felt his stomach. "Finally you take pity in me," he said without thinking, sitting up and rubbing his eyes. "Meh, I had a dream of Armstrong. No, I had a _nightmare_ of Armstrong. Someone help me."

"Ha, well, come on. Before it gets cold." Roy ordered, pulling Edward off of the bed and leading him down the steps and into the bright kitchen, making both of them shield their eyes for a moment.

"Oh, you babies," Pinako teased, setting the plates full of spaghetti on the table. "Come and eat."

Roy pulled out a chair in front of the plate that seemed to have the most spaghetti on it and was about to sit down when Edward lunged into his place and started to eat like a maniac off the Italian dish. How could Roy forget? Ed was 'so empty that his stomach couldn't growl anymore'. So, Roy took a seat next to Ed and started to reach forward for one of the biggest pieces of bread. However, his hand was batted away as Edward grabbed it and started to pile some spaghetti and sauce onto it.

Alphonse kicked Edward under the table for being rude, getting a glare from his older brother. "Brother, stop being rude to Colonel Mustang! You'll be transferring to East City, no? So then you'll be under _his _orders. Don't you forget!"

"I won't forget, I won't forget…" Ed said after swallowing. "So," he said, sparking up a conversation, "How's Rush Valley, Winry?"

"It's spectacular!" Winry exclaimed, pouring herself some milk. She went into a long description of her day's work and how nice everyone there is and how much money she got from repairing messed up automail. "You should really come visit me more often, now that you won't get stopped by all the other automail mechanics wanting to fix your automail since we know Ed doesn't have auto-mail anymore."

Ed smiled, then turned to Al. "What have you and Auntie Pinako been up to lately around here?"

Al hesitated, and so did Pinako. They both exchanged glances before Pinako spoke for him, "Al was thinking about signing up to become a State Alchemist and working under you, Ed. He's read all of your books while you've been gone and your notes and he has excelled greatly. Maybe you can take him with you back to Central and let him take the State Alchemist test."

Roy couldn't believe his ears and neither could Ed it seemed as both of them stopped eating to look at the blushing Al.

"Al, you do know what the responsibilities of becoming a State Alchemist are, don't you?" Ed said, setting down his fork. He quickly regretted what he said and shook his head absently. "Yes, of course you do, you tagged along with me for about 5 years."

Roy just sat there, knowing that nothing that he could say would matter right now since the situation was pretty much between the two brothers. He was mostly thinking about how he could make room for another alchemist in his 'gang'.

"It's you're choice," Ed continued, picking up his bread. "Become a dog of the military if that's what you want. I'll be the legal guardian of you then."

Al's grey eyes lightened up greatly and he giggled. "Thank you, brother! Thank you!"

Ed just shrugged and continued to eat. Roy was surprised that Ed hadn't made the speech he did when he was younger about how it wasn't Al's responsibility and yadda yadda. However, now that their bodies were back he guess that was why Ed probably let Al decide what he wanted to do.

"I will also be a legal guardian then. We can go to Central first thing tomorrow since the test is in a week. How does that sound, Al?" Roy supplied, smiling warmly.

"That sounds perfect, thank you as well, Colonel."

Roy nodded and they all finished their supper in happy chattering after that. Tomorrow they would have to wake up early and Roy was looking forward to it.


	2. Chapter II

Roy's arm hung over the side of the bed, fingers grazing the floor slightly as he scratched his exposed stomach. He was as bad as Ed when it came to decency, some people had told him, but that was okay because he couldn't help it. And it wasn't like his stomach was disgusting to look at. It was nicely toned and very firm; something a Colonel should be fairly proud of.

With a sigh, the Flame Alchemist rolled over onto his back and stretched, his back cracking slightly. The room was fairly warm, especially more towards his right side. As he glanced to the side he realized why. Edward must have transmutated one of the beds into a fireplace, and started it up, making the once semi-cold room nicely heated.

"Morning," came a voice from the doorway. He was half expecting it to be Ed, but the voice was too calm and sweet, almost childish. Footsteps bound into the room, followed by what seemed like two more pairs. He looked down and saw the Rockbell dog following the younger Elric brother. "Did you sleep well?"

"Like always," Roy expressed, sitting up and yawning. "Where is Edward this early?"

Al folded his arms and jerked his head toward the door. "Can't you guess? He woke up at 4:00 this morning and went straight to reading that book downstairs on the table. Also, around 5:30 Armstrong came by and the two have been talking about some serious issues for some time."

"And what time is it now?" Roy questioned, getting up swiftly and straightening out his white shirt.

"7:00 in the morning. The train for Central doesn't leave until ten so we have time." Al explained, patting Den on the head. "Now that you're finally awake Auntie Pinako can start breakfast and you can join Edward and Armstrong in their conversation."

Roy nodded, liking that idea. It was only a matter of minutes before he was at the bottom of the stairs, Al and Den at his heels. Something clanked loudly in the kitchen, causing him to jump slightly. He picked up his pace as he entered the library, the fireplace ablaze as well. However, all notes that had been spread out on the table in there were gone now. "Perhaps they're in the kitchen," he concluded, walking forward toward the open wooden door. He paused, seeing Armstrong in one of the chairs with a tired looking Edward across from him.

It was weird seeing Ed look so lifeless when flipping through his rather successful notes. Armstrong sipped at his cup of tea and picked up one of the other notes. "This is information on Sorrow's case?"

Ed made a very lazy nod as he buried his head in his folded arms on the table. "That's just from the reports and investigations on the information in Dublith," came his muffled and tired voice.

"Edward Elric, how much sleep did you get last night?" Armstrong asked in a worried tone.

That's when Roy decided to make his entrance. "Major Armstrong."

The muscular man turned and brought his right hand up in salute. "Colonel Mustang."

Roy saluted him back before gazing upon Ed's ruffled body. "Lt. Colonel?"

Edward didn't reply. His breathing became deeper and steadier, and his muscles seemed to go limp. Roy smiled warmly, knowing that the Full Metal Alchemist had fallen asleep. Armstrong had noticed it too it seemed and he stood up, walking around to Edward's side of the table and picking him up.

"Just a moment, Colonel. I will take Mr. Elric up to the guest bedroom to sleep, then I will discuss with you the matters that him and I were discussing earlier.

Roy stood aside for Armstrong to get by with Edward's body and he glanced up, only just noticing whom else was in the room. "Ah, Winry. Were you listening in on their conversation?"

Winry's cheeks colored greatly and she spun around, pouring another cup of tea for Roy. "I only came in here to greet the guests. This place is like a private inn for all of you people, you know. I rarely ever get a thanks and I feel more like a maid than a mechanic. And STILL, Ed doesn't drink his milk and—!"

"Now, now, Winry," Roy said, holding up his hands to stop her. "I didn't ask for all that information. So, you weren't eavesdropping, that's all I wanted to know."

The automail mechanic's eyes flared up angrily and she shouted, "Of course I didn't eavesdrop! What kind of person do you think I am? Besides, Edward has been talking so quietly that I wouldn't be able to listen in even if I wanted to!"

"Did he go to bed when I did?" Roy suddenly wondered aloud, sitting down where Edward had been only moments ago.

Winry shook her head, leaning on the counter. "No, because he helped me clean up my room and sort things out a bit. I went to bed at eleven, but I don't think Ed went to bed after that because I could hear the fire crackling even from up here." She sighed and turned away. "I don't like Edward staying in the military. He stays up all night making notes and doing research whenever he's here. Not to mention, if this is his place to 'relax', then what does he do in Central? Stay up all day and night working? I wish that he'd just stop…but now I'm positive he won't since Alphonse has decided to join now as well."

Roy understood Winry's feelings on the matter of Edward's sleeping and work habits. However, he couldn't exactly tell Edward to stop because the Lt. Colonel was one of the strongest State Alchemists in the military. Without him it wouldn't be the same.

"It is their choice. I suggest that you support it as long as you're able, do you hear me?" Roy said sternly, his voice rising slightly.

"Yes, sir." Winry muttered, handing him his tea and stalking out of the room.

Shortly after Winry had left and Roy had curiously flipped through some of the notes, Armstrong returned merrily, sitting back down where he had earlier. He seemed awfully cheery for a guy who had traveled a long distance so early in the morning. His blue eyes were sparkling with glee and Roy didn't know if he was imagining those little pink sparkles around the Major's head or not.

"So," Armstrong said, stretching out his arm to shut the door. "On to business. Edward has been working on this Sorrow case all night it seems and many days before this. Thankfully the news hasn't been passed on over to East City as of yet, but I wouldn't doubt if it's already started to leak in by today."

"Sorrow?" Roy questioned, leaning forward to scan over some of Ed's research.

The Major nodded and pushed forward a drawing that he had done himself. It was of a male, pretty thin around the face, one eye open and the other eye closed with a scar running over it. He had a small goatee, and didn't seem to have any head hair whatsoever. "He's the newest and possibly the most dangerous serial killer we've ever had."

"Who are his targets?"

"It seems, looking at all of the corpses, that none of them seem to be similar in physical appearance. It is a variety of males and females, so it is not another Barry the Chopper case, either. It was Edward's job to try to figure out and find the background of each corpse, yet, he drawn up to a conclusion that none of them followed a similar background of any kind. He checked through them twice. Luckily, Edward thought up of the idea to check up on their talents."

"And?" Roy asked, looking up from the drawing. Armstrong handed him 16 pieces of paper, each providing the picture, name, age, gender, background, location, and talents of each of the victims. It was true; each one seemed to have nothing in common when it came to physical appearance, the gender or background, and under each talent there was a list of different things. However, after looking through each paper, he finally saw the connection. "Alchemy."

Armstrong nodded sadly. "It seems that all alchemists are in extreme danger of Sorrow if he enters the town. Those papers are just from the town Dublith. Imagine what the death toll could be in Central and East City."

Roy ran a hand through his hair, sighing heavily. "Thank you for the information, Major. Has Edward brought this information to the Fuhrer as of yet?"

"He hasn't gotten the chance to. If you were in Central with us you'd be greatly surprised how little you see Mr. Elric throughout the day. He's always in the National library researching like no tomorrow. If he is indeed transferring to East City Headquarters, Colonel, I beg of you to keep and eye on Edward. Make sure he doesn't work too hard."

"I'll make sure of that, Major. And thank you. Will you be staying any longer?"

Armstrong flexed and exclaimed, "I will be joining you on the train to Central!"

Roy chuckled and stood up hastily. "Very well, Major Armstrong. You are free to do what you want until 10:00 when we have to be at the station. I will go check up on Edward now."

The larger officer saluted the Colonel yet again before watching him leave the kitchen and head back up to the bedroom.

The long hallway upstairs was nice and warm thanks to that fire blazing in the guest bedroom. Everything seemed to feel so _right_ as he ventured the corridor, glancing in every room out of habit. Finally he passed through the open door into the 'Military Personnel' and saw Edward, dead asleep, on top of the covers like usual. His leg was bent and his arm fell over his stomach. Roy felt another blush come along.

"Dammit, Roy, pull yourself together," he scolded himself, approaching the sleeping Lt. Colonel. He mentally knew that it was impossible to pull something together once it had been shattered into a million pieces, but he thought it was worth a try.

Edward moaned in his sleep, turning his head away from Roy, revealing the beautiful tan nap of his neck, his white shirt slightly unbuttoned in order to keep cool in the warm room. Roy's jaw dropped and his blush reddened, feeling himself move closer to the bed. He gulped loudly as Ed's soft lips parted, trying to fight off the warm feeling he was getting in his pants.

Roy made a desperate glance to the door, to see if anyone was looking, before hesitantly climbing onto the bed and holding himself over the handsome Fullmetal Alchemist. That tan face was just so gorgeous and soft; he started to wonder what it would taste like. He leaned forward, and kissed the warm cheek, letting out a breath he didn't know that he was holding. Immediately his head ducked down into Edward's hair, loving the way the young military dog smelt. It was a mixture of tea and ashes from sitting by the fireplace so long while doing research.

"Edward…have I ever told you that you're beautiful?" he whispered, pulling back slightly to look at the sleeping angel's face. "I know that there are others jealous of you…myself included." He leaned forward again and kissed the soft nap of Edward's neck.

Suddenly, his head popped up in surprise. He could hear footsteps slowly coming up the stairs. The Flame Alchemist swiftly climbed off Ed without waking him up and walked casually to the window, looking outside as if admiring the scenery.

"Winter is approaching, you know?" came Pinako's voice from the doorway. "I would bet it'll be snowing around when Alphonse takes his test."

Roy ran a finger down the thick glass of the pane, answering calmly, "It wouldn't be much different from around six years ago when Edward took his test."

There came a sigh in reply. "I have never liked the military, in fact, I still despise it, but I only have noticed from Edward's experience that the people in your 'forces' are not as bad as the rest of the military seems. What happened to my son and his wife was not the military's fault. It was a person's fault and I can't control that." There came a long pause before Pinako continued, "Please, take care of Alphonse. Just because Edward has grown up greatly does not mean Alphonse has done the same."

Roy turned around and gave Pinako a reassuring smile. "You have my word."

The short old woman smiled back and left the Colonel to be alone. Roy momentary looked at Edward's seductive sleeping form and frowned. "That was close…I'll see you in two hours when I decide to wake you up."


	3. Chapter III

The station was more crowded than usual. It seemed that, with the winter holidays drawing near, all of the husbands were returning home to celebrate with their families. Roy glanced over at the younger Elric brother and, judging by the brightness in his eyes, it was apparent that he adored the holiday season.

"You know," Armstrong started saying to the rejuvenated Edward, "Christmas cooking is another family tradition in my family's past time. We make wonderful feasts with turkey and duck and great stuffings and-"

"So did my mom," Edward interrupted, holding out his arms. "We had salads, casseroles, fruit, meat, desserts, anything that she could put together. We would have big Christmas dinners with about half of the village. I'm happy to say that her cooking abilities have been passed down to me."

Armstrong was impressed, laughing strongly from his chest. Roy just smiled warmly, looking down at the ground as they waited in the line to get train tickets. It was rather cold out, to the point that both he and the Major had their warm black coats on. He wouldn't be surprised if it started to snow by nightfall.

Roy loved snow. He would often find himself going outside and picking the white flakes off the ground to admire their beauty. He remembered last year when Edward had just been promoted to Lieutenant Colonel and they were standing outside the Central Headquarters. The Fullmetal Alchemist looked so perfect in the snow, even though, much to Roy's displeasure, he constantly constructed almost perfect snowballs and used them. He had been wearing his white gloves and a black scarf that waved in the slight breeze.

It was a perfect image to think about when he was lonely.

"Train leaving for Central! Last call for Central!" came the shout from the impatient conductor, looking at his watch as if it were only a few seconds until the world would end.

Roy growled and pushed past a few people in line, going to the front and pushing forward some money. "Military business. Give me four tickets for Central."

The woman in the booth shivered, from the chilly air and took the money before handing over the tickets. "H-here you are, sir. Have a safe trip." His dark eyes widened as he snatched his tickets and left without a word of thanks, dragging the short, blonde, uniformed man onto the train with the other two following.

The woman in the booth shivered, from

"Hey!" Edward said sternly once on the train. He pulled his hand away and pushed one of his stray hairs behind his ear. Roy looked into his unnatural golden eyes and saw the frown on his face. Roy started to dread what the younger man was thinking and what he was about to say. Did it have anything to do with what happened earlier that day? Was Edward really awake for it? Oh, how he was going to get it. His conscience whimpered in the back of his head.

"Stop dragging me around, Colonel. I'm not your dog."

Roy's eyebrow rose in confusion, not expecting that reply. Of course, Roy was always expecting the worst, a terrible habit on his behalf. However, he couldn't help it. If he took things lightly then he did not deserve his rank as Colonel.

"Bah," Roy groaned, taking a seat nearest to the window. "I need a promotion."

Ed rolled his eyes and took a seat next to him while Armstrong and his younger brother took the seats across from them. Roy saw the Lt. Colonel shift in his seat, trying to get comfortable. Edward was stunning. The Colonel often wondered if he knew just how handsome he was. He had never seen such a nicely tanned face before, and those soft blonde strands of hair looked as if an angel had touched them. But above all those; Roy had never seen such beautiful golden eyes in his life. He was going to be happy to have Edward working under him in East City Headquarters.

"What's that?" Alphonse's voice broke through Roy's thoughts, as the younger brother lifted his arm and pointed curiously at Edward's neck. Colonel Mustang turned to see what Al was pointing at, and abruptly turned away as a light blush painted his cheeks.

A hickey.

Roy looked out the window, trying not to seem obvious as he went over what happened that morning. Edward had been lying in bed; Roy had kissed his cheek, smelt his wonderfully scented hair, and then kissed his neck. Roy's eyes widened in realization that there was no way that he could have given Edward this hickey since he didn't do anything that would have resulted in getting that bruised skin color.

He slowly turned his head to Armstrong, his eyes narrowing as he saw the color on the muscular man's face as well. Roy could feel his jaw dropping bit by bit. So, he wasn't the only one who fondled the innocently latent Edward. He had been wondering what Armstrong wanted from upstairs. It was obvious now that what he wanted was Edward.

Edward's gloved hand reached up and covered the area, confused by what his younger sibling was talking about. He ran his slender fingers over the sensitive spot and blinked. "I must have bruised myself somehow earlier." He shrugged casually and leaned on the arm of his seat. "So, Al, are you ready for your test?"

The two brothers started into a conversation, but Roy was too furious to really get anything out of it. Armstrong and Roy seemed to be having a silent argument with their eyes. The Major's blue eyes sparked with a sign of teasing, as the Colonel's widened. The two were too busy glaring at one another that either of them noticed that the train was already started and was on its way to Central.

Edward yawned after almost an hour of being on the train. He was so bored and was becoming rather tired again. Roy started to get worried. Just how much sleep had Edward lacked that made him so exhausted even after a long nap? He frowned and watched in interest as the Fullmetal Alchemist's eyes shut gradually, falling asleep almost instantly.

Al cleared his throat, getting the two State Alchemist's attention. "Poor thing, Ed doesn't sleep well sitting up on a train. He's been so busy with research that he hasn't slept in days and this train ride won't help him any." He sighed heavily and ran a hand through his hair. "He usually lies down on trains whenever we go anywhere, but since the Colonel is taking up the other seat he can't lie down…" He gave a reassuring smile to the Colonel, however, as the man's eyes filled with guilt. "Here, let me trade places with you."

Roy seemed a little confused at first but did as the younger Elric told him to do. Once situated in their new spots, Al took Edward's shoulders and slowly turned him and gradually helped him down onto his lap. Roy saw the Lt. Colonel's eyes open just a bit to look up at Al but they closed again as he let his long legs hang over the side of the train seat.

"What time is it, Colonel Mustang?" Al asked softly, trying to keep his voice down so he wouldn't wake the slumbering Edward.

"Beats me. It'll probably be around dark when we get there, since it gets dark so early now." Roy answered, leaning on the arm of his seat, taking a quick glance at Armstrong who was staring at the sleeping alchemist.

Al nodded in understanding and set his head onto the cold window to the right of him, his hair moistening already. "I think I'm going to take a nap as well. Wake us up when we get there." And with that, Roy watched as the youngest alchemist there let his eyes shut silently.

Once Roy was sure that the two were fast asleep and unable to hear anything going on around them, he figured now would be a better time than any. He still couldn't believe that Armstrong, of all people, would do such a thing to Edward. His Edward! He was cynical as his dark eyes glared up at Armstrong, who was now staring more hungrily at the Fullmetal Alchemist. How dare he— no, no, don't show that you know, he told himself quickly before looking away and at a woman in the seat next to him. He needed a way to preoccupy himself.

As he looked at the woman he saw right away the strands of her multi-colored hair semi spiked out in all different directions. She had teal and gray eyes that were busily reading a book. She had the same style pants as he did but they were brown and also tucked slightly under her black boots. Roy couldn't see what shirt she was wearing since she was wearing a black jacket and a maroon scarf.

He tilted his head a bit to see the title of the book that she had her nose buried into, and his eyes widened. Alchemy? He cleared his throat and croaked, "Excuse me?"

The woman looked up from her book at the colonel and smiled. "Yes?"

"You're reading a book on alchemy and heading to Central?"

"Indeed! I'm planning on trying out for the State Alchemist exam next week! I'm very excited, I hope I do well!" The woman expressed gleefully, setting a hand on her chest. "And by the uniforms that you're wearing, I'd guess that you're State Alchemists?

Roy nodded and smiled back at the woman. "Yes. I am Colonel Roy Mustang, this is Major Armstrong, and the one lying down is Lt. Colonel Edward Elric."

"The Fullmetal Alchemist?" She said in awe, looking at the handsome sleeping form. "Oh, my manners! I am Fate Vienna!" She held out her hand in which Roy immediately took. "I hope to see both you and Mr. Elric at my test."

"I look forward to watching you," Roy replied honestly as he released her hand. He had no intention of talking to the Major on the rest of their ride to Central, and since he had a few hours to burn he decided to continue talking to Fate. She really did seem like a very interesting person, her eyes looked like they were filled with stories of her past and her smile seemed so understanding. "So, where are you from?"

Fate folded a page in her book and closed it, setting it down on her lap. She crossed her legs politely and looked back towards Roy. "I grew up in Lior, but then I moved to Rush Town to get automail since I lost my leg as a child," she paused to bang on her right leg, grinning as it made a metal clank, "and then I traveled by foot to Fresh Town, a small town near Rizenbul that isn't on the map since the railroad doesn't pass through it. So, I walked up to Rizenbul to get on the train and here I am!"

The Colonel couldn't help but be slightly fascinated by her story of traveling from one place to another, but since he'd heard so many more appealing stories from Edward he couldn't be anything more than a bit impressed with Fate's story.

"Ever since I was a child when I first lost my leg," Fate started quietly, looking down at the book on her lap, "I have been an extreme fan of Edward Elric. He was just like me, I had told myself over and over again. And he helped so many people at each place he went to, I was so envious." Her eyes started to well up with tears as she looked up at Roy. "It's because of him that I started to study alchemy! And now, here I am, sitting just a few feet from him and I can't even thank him."

"I would wake him up for you," Roy offered, smiling warmly, "but the Lt. Colonel has been working so hard lately that he really needs his rest. I hope you understand." At Fate's nod he added hastily, "Don't worry though, he'll be awake before we get to Central I'm sure. He had a long nap this morning."

The woman's eyes brightened up greatly and she leaned forward, hugging Roy. "Thank you, Colonel Roy Mustang."

And indeed, about an hour later of chattering about different things, Edward started to wake up, giving a big yawn and gradually sitting up. Roy was about to open his mouth to introduce Fate, but the blonde got up rapidly and walked to the back of the train car and exited. The three watched him with confusion and Armstrong, speaking for the first time in that hour, asked where he was going.

"Beats me," Roy mumbled, standing up, about to follow him but gulped as the door reopened and there stood Edward, holding a brown paper bag full of donuts and rolls. Roy could feel his jaw dropping and his eye twitching.

"You have _no_ idea how hungry I am!" Ed exclaimed loudly, taking a seat back next to Al who was slowly waking up. "Hey Al, I got some food," he said, holding a donut in front of his brother's groggy face.

Al's eyes narrowed at the food and he ripped it out of the Fullmetal Alchemist's hands, shoving it into his mouth. "Thank you, brother," he managed through his full mouth.

Roy cleared his throat and gestured to Fate as Ed busily dug for another donut out of the bag for himself. His golden eyes glanced at the woman and he smiled, setting the bag down at his feet. "Hello, I'm Edward Elric," he held out his open right hand while the other one was proficiently holding his delicious looking donut to his perfect mouth.

Fate hesitated. And stared at the hand. It was covered with flesh, much different from the automail he was said to have. However, she smiled back at him and took his warm hand in a strong shake. "Fate Vienna."

Roy leaned forward and helped himself to a roll from the bag. Armstrong did the same, but looked out the window in silence instead of joining in on the conversation. Roy sighed with relief and turned back to Fate, who was gazing at the stunning Lt. Colonel. His eyes widened a bit and he frowned. So, how many more people would be falling for the attractive state alchemist? He ignored it though, since he knew Fate would never have a chance since Edward was so busy as it was. His eyes saddened a bit at the thought. That would mean that Fullmetal wouldn't have time for him, either.

A speaker went throughout the car announcing their arrival to Central. Ed finished off his donut and turned to Fate with curiosity. "Do you have a place to stay here?"

Fate colored and she shook her head. "N-no…I am supposed to stay with my legal guardian for the test, but I don't have one yet."

"Splendid, you can stay in my place with Alphonse. It's only a two-bedroom apartment though so it'll just be you two. At night I'll go over to Roy's apartment across the hall to sleep, is that okay with you, Roy?" Ed said, stretching a bit.

Roy would have replied quickly with a definite 'yes', but that would be a lie. He had already promised Riza that she could have the extra room in his apartment temporarily since hers was being remodeled. "Sorry, Ed, but Riza is staying with me this week."

"We all live in the same apartment building," Major Armstrong spoke up, standing up to get their things out of the overhead storage. "Edward, you're welcome to stay with me for the week. I have an extra bedroom open."

"Thank you, Major Armstrong!" Ed exclaimed, letting the larger man carry his things while he took the bag of donuts out with him.

He got the feeling that something bad was going to happen and tried to think of something, anything, that he could say to keep Ed away from Major Armstrong. He came up with nothing however, and glanced back at Armstrong, not feeling comfortable with the situation. Little did he know that maybe he should have spoken up.


	4. Chapter IV

The night sky seemed so calm compared to the city below it. People bustled around anxiously, brushing past the Colonel impolitely as they made their way through the crowd. Edward didn't seem to mind a bit, since all those naps seemed to put an extra amount of energy in his system. He just held his blue jacket to his chest and chatted with Fate who nervously talked back. As Roy scanned the area, however, he noticed that there were more military personnel than usual, all checking each person as they got off, as the got on, and as they walked out of the station. Things must've been extremely uptight thanks to Sorrow.

"I've never been to Central before," Fate voiced, admiring the lights and the late night shoppers. She ran a hand through her spiky mismatched colored hair and sighed respectably, her bright eyes looking at the tall buildings. "Rush Town was kind of like this."

Edward smiled down at Fate, explaining casually, "Central never used to be this light hearted and carefree before, thanks to the constant wars. However, now that we have a new Fuhrer and less wars, Central has found a reason to be happy again."

"Sorrow doesn't help the situation though," Armstrong said, frowning as he cautiously looked around. "Thankfully, besides the military, not very many people are alchemists."

Roy nodded in agreement, folding his arms and looking at the ground. "Was Izumi murdered?"

The Fullmetal Alchemist shook his head sternly. "She wasn't in Dublith when this happened."

"Where was she?"

"At our house," Al replied for Edward, his grip tightening on the suitcase he held. "She said that she suddenly felt the need to catch up on her students, however, brother was still in Central."

Ed cleared in throat, leading the four down a quiet street, a fence blocking the way to the rest of some of the buildings. A man dressed in a black uniform stood on guard, hands behind his back and his face emotionless as they approached. Roy gazed to the top of the buildings to see silhouette figures holding guns and pointing them towards the entrance of the street.

"Sir," the man said sternly, holding up his hand to stop them. "This is the State Alchemist's street for training and dorm purposes only. Please show me the proof that you are _all_ state alchemists and not either regular personnel."

Roy, Armstrong, and Ed all held out their silver watches for the man to check. "Very well," he said, glancing at Al and Fate. "And you two?"

"They are staying with me. Next week they will be taking the State Alchemist exams and will be living here as well." Edward explained, putting his watch safely back in his pocket. "That won't be a problem will it?"

The man saluted them and stepped aside, muttering something like "not at all" and lowering his head as they walked past him.

The street seemed so silent, almost too silent. It was so private. Each building had a plaque on the wall explaining what each building was for, but since it was dark, Roy gestured to each one and supplied, "This the Dorm I building and that's Dorm II next to it. Beyond that side of the street is the Training Hall. Across the street over here," another gesture, "is where the Apartments are. Apartments have several rooms compared to the Dorms, and are usually reserved for wealthier and higher ranking personnel. Also, we have a few weapon shops on this side of the street, which I'm banning you from going to Al."

Edward nodded in agreement to the Colonel's last statement. "Fate, I won't allow you to go into any either. Wait until you are actually a State Alchemist before you go into those shops. Besides, I doubt they'll even let you since you aren't yet. You'll mainly be either in my apartment, in the Central Library, or in the market getting me food," he expressed, grinning. He turned to one of the Apartment buildings, walking casually up the steps and pulling open the door.

The apartment was high class, not the crummy ones like in downtown Central. It had red carpeting, marble walls and a chandelier right in the entrance. They walked forward a bit and started to climb the long stairs, Armstrong talking confidently about his family's stair climbing contests.

"We'd see who could build the stairs and climb up them the fastest. My sister and me were always very close to winning."

Fate and Al giggled as Edward turned down a tile hallway and to the first door to the left. He pulled out his keys and unlocked the black door, pushing it open and standing aside for the others to walk in. "Welcome to my apartment. Don't mind the mess."

Roy and the others stopped dead in their tracks as their eyes widened at the open books and notes spread out over the floor. It was almost as if that one librarian girl was living there with Ed, Roy couldn't remember her name.

Sidestepping over some of the papers, the Colonel made his way to the comfy looking couch covered with several blankets and some clothes. "You've been doing _this_ much research just on Sorrow?"

Ed shrugged and hung his coat on the hook by the door. He ran a hand down the concrete wall as he approached the open space, rubbing the back of his neck. "It's my job." Quietly, he knelt down on the wood floor and started to gather up everything, shoving the notes in between pages of the books.

"Even so, don't you think you're pushing yourself too hard?" Roy wondered as he slumped into the black clothed couch. "Erg, I'm so awake right now," he complained, running a hand through his raven hair. "I say we drop our stuff off and go somewhere for a drink."

Fate's eyes lightened up and she set her duffle bag by the door leading to one of the empty bedrooms. "I vote for that!"

"I'm not of legal age to drink, and neither is Al or Fate." Ed pointed out, cracking his neck.

"What are you talking about?" The Colonel exclaimed, standing up quickly. "I never said anything about bringing along Alphonse or Fate! It'd just be you, Major Armstrong, and me. Besides, it's a State Alchemist bar; you don't have to be of legal age." He rushed towards Ed, pulled him up from the ground, and waved to the two. "Sorry, kiddies," he teased, and left with the door open, expecting Armstrong to follow closely behind.

"You know what I don't understand?" Edward asked, twirling his small straw in his glass of rum.

"What?"

Ed rose and eyebrow and continued, "You are stationed back in East City, and yet you have an apartment here in Central. And Riza just happens to be back in Central as well so your apartment is full, but otherwise your apartment would just be empty and gathering up dust. Why have an apartment here anyway?"

"Well you see, Ed, I've been back and forth from Central to East City, so it's always reassuring to know I have a bed to come home to at both cities," the Colonel slurred, finishing off another drink. "Are you going to sell your apartment when you've transferred to East City with me?"

Ed thought about it for a while and took a gulp of his rum. "Of course," he answered. "Saves me the trouble of paying for both at the same time."

Armstrong hiccuped and both alchemists stared at him for a moment, before laughing. It seemed that the muscular man was becoming a bit drunk himself, his cheeks turning red and his eyelids lowering a bit. Ed knew now that he would be the designated person of the two and would have to walk both of them home so they don't do anything extremely stupid.

"So!" Roy said, his voice turning darker as he glared at Armstrong. "Didja enjoy giving Ed that hickey?"

Ed's golden eyes widened as he watched Armstrong choke in his pint.

"You don't find soft skin like his everyday," the Major finally answered, a grin coming over his face. It was as if both the older State Alchemist blocked out the fact that Ed was there now.

"True," Roy said, leaning back in his chair.

Ed looked down at his lap while the two went on about how soft and tan his skin was. His face flushed, but not from being drunk since he wasn't. He felt embarrassed and suddenly incredibly nervous to be around the two people that he'd grown to trust. He shut his eyes, trying to ignore the two and focus on listening to someone else's conversation.

"Look at that State Alchemist there, he can't be older than 18."

"Golden eyes, you don't see that very often. Not very often at all."

"That's the Fullmetal Alchemist!"

"Fullmetal? I thought the Fullmetal Alchemist was supposed to be short. He's not short at all, he's pretty average height for his age."

"Yeah, well, he grew up." A chuckle.

"He's pretty hot."

"He sure is."

Ed's eyes opened again. Was he really that handsome that _everyone_ seemed to have eyes for him? He glanced around the dimly lit pub, noticing the group of men that were staring at him almost hungrily. He looked away and back at the two he was sitting with.

"I'll kick your ass if you touch Edward again," Roy suddenly hissed, his eyes shooting daggers.

Armstrong seemed to be shooting daggers right back.

Ed felt violated enough for one night. He stood up abruptly, his chair falling backwards with a loud clank. The pub seemed to go silent as they watched Edward frown and spit with venom, "I'm going home. You two can stumble on the streets for however long you feel necessary, but you're not getting any help from me! I'll see you tomorrow morning." He put a few dollars on the table and walked out, the doors swinging behind him.

"Fuck," was all Roy said as he let his forehead smack onto the wooden table roughly.

"Another drink?" Armstrong offered.

"Screw you."

Thank you, everyone, for the good comments. This story will be rather long, I'm certain, since I have a BIG plot ready for this particular fic. Sorry that it took so long to finish this, since I've been busy with studying for exams. However, I finally came up here after watching a few episodes of Queer as Folk and decided to finally finish this chapter.

Let me tell you that it's so hard to continue Listen now that I've finally finished the series of FMA in late Dec. However, I guess we're just going to have to ignore some the events that happened in episodes 50 and 51 because in this fic, those events never happened. However, the other events did so I'm trying to work with all of that.

I hope I get more comments from all of you because now Listen has taken a smut turn and I don't know if will even let me finish it because what's coming up may seep into NC-17. Then I'll take a last resort and put it into adultFF :D So, enjoy! I'll update soon!

Lili


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